Tommy Thompson Enters White House Race

Former Governor and Health Secretary Joins GOP Field As "The Reliable Conservative"

(AP)  Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson on Sunday joined the crowded field of Republicans running for the White House in 2008. "I am the reliable conservative," he asserted.

Thompson, who was health and human services secretary during President Bush's first term, also said he is the only GOP candidate who has helped assemble both a state and federal budget.

Since announcing last year he was forming a presidential exploratory committee to raise money and gauge support, Thompson has lagged behind better-known rivals.

Asked Sunday whether he was running for president, Thompson said, "That is correct."

Thompson, 65, has focused his strategy on Iowa, which holds the nation's first caucuses for presidential nominees. He has made weekly visits to the state and sought to make the case that it will take a candidate who can carry the Midwest to win the nomination.

"I'm telling you, things are starting to coalesce," Thompson said Sunday, despite his single-digit polling.

He said his Iraq strategy would be "tremendously" different from Bush's and said he opposed the Democratic approach in Congress to start withdrawing U.S. troops based on timelines.

At a recent news conference in Wisconsin, Thompson called himself "the dark horse candidate. I was a dark horse candidate for governor. I was a dark horse candidate when I ran for the Assembly. I am the underdog, and I don't mind that."

The son of a grocer, Thompson spent 14 years as governor of Wisconsin, pushing for an overhaul of the state's welfare laws. He also championed a school choice program for Milwaukee.

His time in Bush's Cabinet included anthrax attacks, a flu vaccine shortage and passage of the Medicare prescription drug benefit law.

In 2006, he briefly flirted with the idea of running for governor but in the end decided not to seek his old job. He had considered running for president in 2000 but scrapped that, too, deciding he lacked support.

The leading GOP candidates in the race include former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, Arizona Sen. John McCain and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Thompson was interviewed on "This Week" on ABC.

[book54552134]

Like Dubya?
Try Tommy. You'll get more of the same.

Though he was popular (like Dubya) during his 1st terms as Gov. of Wisconsin, his repressive & regressive Tort Reform laws & tax policies left the people of the State in dire straights.
Like many States, Wisconsin has laws which require a yearly balanced budget, (as the State cannot print extra money to increase the money supply, as Dubya has done.)
To date, Wisconsin is still struggling to balance it's budget after Thompson left it in such horrible condition which required years of expensive budget deficits.

Additionally, Thompson adjusted the State's medical malpractice laws so that only people who fall under very narrowly defined status, (only married spouses or minor children with a guardian who would be willing to support the child's lawsuit,) could ever sue, on behalf of a deceased person, any medical expert for malpractice. This change effectivly elimitated more than half of all medical-malpractice lawsuits in Wisconsin whether malpractice occurred or not.

Think things are bad now - try Tommy. They'll get worse!

[radiob-2009]

Another shrunken head running for president, that makes about 30 so far.

[forthepeaple]

hey bill- i know what i would do if i was president. and i would of done it in the first place.. then shock and ah, would of been shock and light up. we should of nuke them all and everyone would of s/h/i/t/ them selves for awhile than say ok i guess we cant play with the americans..

[frb01]

If the Democrats continue to screw up their power they got in the last election, in another year, a Republican may have a chance. I can be as cynical as anyone, but if you can't find a suitable candidate among those who are in, or those who are thinking about it, probably on the Republican side, Fred Thompson, George Pataki, or those who have dropped out, Evan Bayh, Gov. Warner, Gov. Vilsack, then we have a problem. Outside of the ungodly amount of money it takes to run a campaign, which hinders those who do not have name recognition, you have another choice. And that is to investigate what Actor Sam Waterston is doing with his bi-partisan effort. People don't exercise their right to get involved in the voting process, this time they should because it is wide open for the first time in generations and the only way we fix the problem is if we vote the right candidates in. American citizenship is a big responsibility in this country, we need to step up to it.

This is another message to Katie Couric, you can do all of us a big favor in the country, create a news special which can be used for everyone from students on up, and what the total process is step by step, meaning from the exploratory committee to the primaries to the nomination to the election so all of us know the process. Many of us could use a refresher.
B

[bill1fj]

Tommy announced he's running for president. Great.
But where does he stand on the issues that matter to most of us. What would he do to settle this Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan mess?
What would he do with the millions of illegal aliens here, and those businesses/people that hire them? What would he do to get health care access as good as what congress gives themslves? What would he do to get better access to education for all legal citizens?
What would he do to get rid of all the "pork" passed by congress each year and then signed by the presidents?
This is what I want to know.
Thank You

[jn122736]

"His time in Bush's Cabinet included anthrax attack"

Still unsolved just like the actual cause of the WTO towers collapse.

[omega39-2009]

Republican national candidates are wasting their time, Bush has screwed over the party so badly, they couldn't get elected to the position of dog catcher next year.

[j0hnwi11iams]

Oh terrific. Another stooge like Frist with his head up the arse of the private health industry. He can't get enough of that BS. Meanwhile Health cares in this country slides into the dark ages.

[imprisonbush]

Tommy Thompson's most IMPORTANT credential: he worked with GW Bush. Whooopppsss. Find that picture of the two of them together in the same picture and he's finished. Proof positive of a lack of judgment. Guilt by association, just like Lieberman and McCain. In fact, Guiliani and Romney BEST qualification is that they NEVER worked for GW Bush.

Thompson's presence will also be interesting because he could draw the neo-nut vote away from the three stooges at the top. So the three stooges will be fighting over what's left of the moderate Repubublican vote who have not abandoned the Repubs. This cannot be a very large number of people since all thinking persons have abandoned the Bush neo-nuts. If the neo nuts go with Thompson, who's left? Oh my God, nobody!

[macusweil]

"What is up to now about 30 people running for president and not one of them worth voting for."

Yeah maybe, but sadly anyone one of them would be better that our current "W"orst ever president.

[bluestardad]

stick a fork in him he is done if he is a republican! best thing Republicans can do is change parties and run in primaries against democrats cause anything with a GOP beside it is finished!

[silver9991]

Agreed, radiob. It's like that song, "57 Channels and Nothin's On".

I think smart people know better than to run for President.

[radiob-2009]

What is up to now about 30 people running for president and not one of them worth voting for.